Virulence

Chapter 3 - Lark Finds the Quiet Room

I jumped awake in the semi darkness of the bedroom cavern, having no idea how I got there. Last place I remembered being was sprawled out across the kitchen table. I sit up and curse under my breath as a jolt of pain shoots through my shoulder. I then remembered the lion incident and the fresh wounds it had left on me. I'll have to keep from stretching it too much.

I look around the room and see that everyone is asleep except Rias. In fact, I didn't even see a bed for him in here. I wonder where he slept at night? I didn't feel tired anymore so I decided to explore a bit.

I wandered around the dark cavern hallways, looking for any new rooms that I haven't been in before. And after a few minutes of being lost I finally found one. It was a massive, semi lit natural cavern. Multiple sized stalagmites hang from the ceiling and several of them had water dripping from them. There was a small flat area that reminded me of a stage that sloped down into a glimmering blue pool of water.

There were a few stepping stones scattered around the water's surface, and the tiny waves of light from the water bobbed and wiggled across the jagged walls. Of all the rooms I'd been in so far, this one was one of the noisiest. There were splashes and droplet sounds, and well as the occasional bat squeak or cave cricket.

I was about to leave when footsteps alerted me to someone entering the room. I whirled around to see Rias smirking at me, hands up in mock surrender.

"Easy there, I was just coming to join you."

I relaxed before sitting down cross-legged near the ledge of the pool. Rias quickly joined me. We sat in silence for a moment, listening to the ambient noises.

"Did you carry me to bed after I passed out?" I finally asked.

Rias nodded, "I did. You were sleeping so peacefully I didn't want to wake you."

I turned my attention back to the water. "Thanks by the way."

Rias didn't reply, but I was sure he knew that I meant for saving me. It was incredible how he took down that lion so quickly and easily. I wondered if I would ever be strong enough to do that.

"You will grow to be strong enough," Rias said, startling me. He seemed to be able to read my thoughts. "Once we get really into your training."

I turned more to face him. "Are you telepathic? And what kind of training exactly?"

Rias smiled but didn't look at me. "You display your thoughts on your face, Cub. And you will see soon."

"What's with the secrecy? Don't want to ruin the surprise?"

Instead of answering, Rias stood and extended a hand to me. "You talk too much. We will start right now."

I gaped up at him. "Right now? But-"

Before I could complain any more, Rias gripped me by the arm and yanked me to my feet before shoving me backwards into the pool of water. I thrashed around for a bit before getting my feet under me again. The pool was shallower where I landed but it dropped off to deep depths only a few feet away. And I didn't want to think about what could be lurking down there.

"What the hell was that for?" I growled, spitting water out of my mouth.

Rias walked over to the wall next to the door, to a light switch I hadn't noticed before. "Once you take away one of the senses, you need to learn how to enhance the others."

Rias flicked off the switch, engulfing the room in complete darkness. I then started to panic. I couldn't hear anything other than the sounds of waves, crickets, and droplets. There was a light tap on my left shoulder, making me whirl and swing my arm around wildly. Of course I didn't hit anything.

"You need only to touch me to end the training." Rias' voice echoed off the cavern walls, making it impossible for me to pinpoint his location. "And I won't be taking it easy on you."

As if to prove his point, a hand gripped around my throat, hoisted me into the air, and launched me backwards. I shouted as my injured back collided with one of the floating stones. My feet never found ground so I clung to the rock for dear life. I struggled to pull myself onto the rock, but was swatted back into the water. I swung in the direction of the hand but hit nothing.

I waded as best I could, but Rias was relentless. He kicked at my chest and shoved my head under the water, not letting me catch my breath.

After what felt like an hour I was exhausted and every muscle in my body was screaming, but I couldn't quit. I had to beat Rias at his own game. I ducked under the water and swam towards what I hoped was the shore. I emerged as quietly as I could and focused, trying to pick out Rias' movements over all the other sounds.

It was difficult, but I heard the skittering of a pebble as something landed on a stone to my right. Without any hesitation, I swung my arm out wide. My elbow connected with what felt like a calf, and a low curse followed after. I wanted to gloat, but I was too busy keeping my head above the water.

There was a soft splash and a then a hand snaking its way around my chest and pulled my trembling body against theirs. I could feel the ripple of hard muscle against my spine as Rias tugged me through the water towards the shore. Once we reached the shallow end, Rias released me and went to turn the lights back on.

I winced as the glare of the string lights hit my eyes. It took a few moments for them to adjust again. Rias appeared over me, looking amused. "That was faster than I thought. You have some promise, Cub."

I glared up at him. "That was a dick move. And my name is Lark."

Rias just chuckled before pulling me by the wrist onto dry ground. "Our training methods are extreme, but you will grow to understand them."

I groaned as I tried to sit up but my muscles refused to work for me. Rias sat down beside me and pulled me against his chest before massaging my biceps and shoulders. I was alarmed at the intimate gesture, but was thankful that I seemed to be getting some blood flow back.

"You need to get this rebandaged in the morning." Rias gently pulled the soaked bandages off my shoulder. My limbs were still too numb for me to register if there was any pain.

I let my eyes drift closed, being lulled to sleep by his touch.

Rias pushed me gently. "Don't fall asleep on me. I'm not carrying you again."

I groaned but was glad to be able to feel my arms and legs again. I stumbled to my feet, slightly disappointed that Rias didn't support me. I was getting oddly used to this strange bipolar attention. I liked Nice Rias better than Hardass Rias.

Rias led me back to the bedroom and nodded goodbye before leaving. I wondered briefly how much he usually slept before collapsing into my bed, falling asleep instantly.